Things ARE going ‘sideways’…..
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The French president announced that France would recognise Palestine as a state. Emmanuel Macron posted on X on Thursday that he would formalise the “solemn” decision at the UN general assembly in September, saying: “There is no alternative.”
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Israeli leaders including prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu fiercely condemned Macron’s announcement. In a statement echoing his senior ministers, Netanyahu said Macron’s decision “rewards terror and risks creating another Iranian proxy, just as Gaza became”.
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US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff said the Trump administration would recall its consultation team from Gaza ceasefire talks in Qatar. Witkoff said on X: “We have decided to bring our team home from Doha for consultations after the latest response from Hamas, which clearly shows a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire in Gaza … Hamas does not appear to be coordinated or acting in good faith.”
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Israel also recalled its negotiating team following Hamas’s response, effectively suspending weeks of Qatar-mediated talks that had shown only limited progress.
- Hamas called France’s recognition of a Palestinian state “a positive step”and urged all countries to do the same despite Israeli opposition. Saudi Arabia hailed the French recognition as a “historic decision”, while Ireland deputy prime minister Simon Harris called it an “important contributiontowards implementing the two state solution”.
- Keir Starmer said he would hold an “emergency call” on Friday with France and Germany on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, urging a ceasefire and steps towards Palestinian statehood. “The suffering and starvation unfolding in Gaza is unspeakable and indefensible,” the British prime minister said. “We are witnessing a humanitarian catastrophe.”
- The UN said on Thursday it did not know how many truckloads of aid were awaiting distribution inside the Gaza border because Israel had not granted it access. International criticism is growing over the plight of the more than 2 million Palestinians in Gaza, where more than 100 aid and rights groups have warned that “mass starvation” is spreading…..